A MAIN road through Downend could get a 20mph limit – enforced with average speed cameras.
The cameras are proposed for the A432 Badminton Road between the Avon Ring Road and Cleeve Hill traffic lights: around a mile and a quarter of road that currently has a 30mph limit.
A new 20mph limit would also cover the high street area, extending along Downend Road to the Bristol boundary, and along North Street to join up with the existing 20mph zone.
People are being asked to have their say on the proposals, which also include extending the 20mph limit to 50 nearby side roads that are currently 30mph.
Five new zebra crossings are also proposed on Badminton Road as part of the project, which is aimed at reducing road accident casualties.
South Gloucestershire Council is working with neighbouring Bristol City Council on the plans, which would see the 20mph limit on the A432 extended to cover the entire five-and-a-half mile stretch from the ring road to the city centre end of Stapleton Road.
The two councils were awarded £2.275 million from the previous government’s Safer Roads Fund for schemes that could bring about “significant reductions in fatal and serious injuries”.
The Road Safety Foundation estimates the proposed improvements would reduce fatal and serious injury accidents on the road by more than 30% over the next 20 years.
Bristol City Council is leading the project, as more of the affected stretch of the A432 is inside its boundaries than in South Gloucestershire.
The proposals also include reducing the speed limit on the last stretch of Fishponds Road that currently has a 30mph limit, between Muller Road and Lodge Causeway.
But the only length of road where speed cameras are being proposed is the Badminton Road section in Downend.
An average speed camera system records traffic passing between two cameras a set distance apart.
A photo is taken and the exact time a vehicle passes each camera is recorded, so a computer can work out how long it took to travel between them, and how fast the vehicle was going.
The proposal for average speed cameras is not mentioned on either of the councils’ press releases announcing the consultation but is included on page 3 of the online survey.
New pedestrian crossings
The project also includes plans for five new zebra crossings on Badminton Road at the following locations:
• Either just north or south of the Westons Brake junction, where there are currently two pedestrian refuges in the middle of the road
• Near the Britannia Close junction between The Paddocks and Church Lane
• At the Blackhorse Lane junction, next to the Trident pub
*At the Leap Valley footpath crossing
• At the Cleeve Park Road junction, near Oakdale Road
Proposals for the Blackhorse Lane junction also include a new crossing on Blackhorse Lane itself.
New 20mph zone
As part of the proposals all the minor roads either side of Badminton Road would have 20mph limits.
The new limits would cover around 50 roads including Aintree Drive, Fontwell Drive, Church Lane, Blackhorse Lane, Westbourne Road, Beaufort Road, Sutherland Avenue and all of their side roads.
Roads in Bromley Heath that link to Badminton Road, including Oakdale Road and Four Acre Road, already have a 20mph limit, although the area’s Neighbourhood Watch group has repeatedly reported that this is “widely ignored”.
Road safety aim
The city council says that between August 2020 and August 2023 there were 140 collisions on the A432, including one fatal and 11 serious crashes, along with 128 “slight collisions”, resulting in 149 casualties.
The two councils made a joint bid to the Department for Transport’s Safer Roads Fund, which was approved by the last government in early 2024, after the Road Safety Foundation said the A432 between the A4174 and the city centre posed “a significant risk of fatal and serious injuries”.
The RSF’s Crash Risk Mapping project uses traffic flow data and figures on reported road casualties to assess risks.
It has taken until now for the two councils to draw up plans, which they say will make the road “safer and more accessible for all road users”, and open them to public consultation.
The city council will spend £1.19m on its stretch of the road and South Gloucestershire will spend around £1.09m.
South Gloucestershire cabinet member for transport Chris Willmore said: “This is one of the busiest routes in our area, and we know that safety is a real concern for residents and businesses. “These proposals are designed to make the road safer for everyone and provide improvements to encourage more people to walk, wheel, cycle or use public transport.
“Please let us know your thoughts – your feedback is vital to help us get this right.”
City council transport and connectivity committee chair Ed Plowden said: “The A432 has a poor safety record, and we want to make it safer and to feel more welcoming for everyone – whether you’re walking, wheeling, cycling or driving.
“The proposed road safety measures also support our climate goals .
“I encourage people across both areas to take part in the consultation.”
How to have your say
The A432 Safer Roads survey is being run by the city council, and is open for comments until midnight on February 13.
It can be found at bristol.gov.uk/a432-safer-road-survey.
Anyone who is not online can take part by calling 0117 922 2848 and asking for the survey in a different format.
The survey includes questions on whether people agree or disagree with the new 20mph limits, speed cameras and crossing points, and asks them to suggest other points on the A432 where they regularly need to cross the road.
The consultation has been advertised on the councils’ websites, as well as with posters attached to lampposts.
Downend resident Graham Ball believes the proposals have been “poorly communicated” and has been urging people who live near the road to have their say.
He has written to Cllr Willmore, saying: “The proposals are draconian, binary and not persuasive. Most residents see Badminton Road currently as safe and wide. Residents will regard cameras as council cash cow.”
Graham told the Voice he is concerned that if a 20mph limit was enforced it could push traffic on to other roads, such as Westerleigh Road, Bromley Heath Road and Cleeve Hill.
He said: “Enforcing the 30mph limit on Badminton Road would be a better option.”
A zebra crossing is proposed for the Westons Brake junction, to replace one of the two pedestrian refuges currently on either side
The pedestrian refuge next to the Cleeve Park Road junction would be replaced by a zebra crossing
A zebra crossing is proposed to link the Leap Valley path either side of Badminton Road, which would involve building out the pavement where the eastern part of the path meets the road
The pedestrian refuge near the Britannia Close junction could be replaced by a zebra crossing